California trip…

Well I guess I’m still on California time even though I got back home on Monday evening as it’s now late into the evening Florida time as I write this blog. I’ve been meaning to get my report done for a couple of days now but when you spend sometime away your desk tends to get loaded upon your return!

Anyway, I had a great week in California. The purpose of the trip was to go to Hollywood to be interviewed for the America’s Premier Experts TV show but I thought I’d take the opportunity to do a few other things as well.

My first day in California saw me attend the Dr. Phil show…and what a hoot that was as we saw “America’s Cheapest Family” share their tips for surviving on $44K a year! Yeah right…tell that to my wife! Not to mention my daughters!

The Economides family (apparently that’s their real name) gave us tips on avoiding debt, living below your means and embracing a thrifty lifestyle. We then met a couple called Daniel and Mandy showing us how to go bankrupt by spending wildly beyond their means! It was all fun and games but for me, I was mainly interested in seeing how the show was put together and just how good Dr. Phil was. Have to say, he’s pretty darned good behind the camera…no retakes…just a straight shoot and it’s in the can. It was also nice to walk away with a $200 gas card that every member of the studio audience was given…now that was appreciated…thanks Dr. Phil!

After the show had finished I got away pretty quickly as I wanted to get along to Santa Barbara county and to get a day or two of rest and relaxation in before the crazy weekend that was about to hit me. Of course, it didn’t hurt that I was entering wine country! It was also nice to escape the urban sprawl that is L.A. and to get out into the hills and valleys and see some wonderful scenary. I also took the opportunity to enjoy a wonderful luncheon overlooking the 18th hole at Rancho San Marcos golf course.

After my first night stay in Hollywood it was nice to find a small hotel in a lovely place called Solvang. If you’ve never been then you need to go…it’s basically an old authentic Danish city and is one of the cities that makes up the Santa Ynez valley. The city has several bakeries, restaurants and merchants offering a taste of Denmark and having been there not so long ago on a fabulous cruise it was interesting to see how traditional Solvang actually was. Have to say it was just like being in Denmark, particularly when I visited the small Hans Christian Andersen museum.

That’s about all I have time for tonight …tomorrow I’ll tell you more about the trip.